Fall foliage at Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine

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God was a careless artist when he created Maine. He did not dab with a paintbrush. He did not splash. He poured beauty over the State. Nowhere is this magnificence more evident than in Acadia National Park, which occupies nearly half of Mount Desert Island and a scattering of smaller islands off the coast of northeast Maine.

Fall colors in Acadia National Park

I could live here for years and still not sample everything that Acadia National Park has to offer, much less see it in its many moods and seasons. As it was, I spent the better part of two days viewing the spectacular fall foliage, which may have been the showiest display in years because of the abundant summer rains. On day one I began by driving the 27-mile loop road in the eastern section of the park, which is the easiest way to see spots like Sand Beach, a turquoise jewel of a cove tucked between two rocky arms that is a favorite of summer beach-goers, and the historic Jordan Pond House, known for their tea and popovers as much for the view from their floor-to-ceiling windows.

Sand Beach in Acadia National Park, Maine

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Oh the weather outside is frightful, But the fire is so delightful, And since we’ve no place to go, Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

At the moment, the lyrics of this old song could not be more appropriate. I arrived in Bar Harbor, Maine at noon yesterday to skies so dark and gloomy that it was difficult to get a good photo. From the town pier I climbed the hill and strolled through Agamont Park where, despite the chilly weather, people sat on wooden benches enjoying the view of the harbor. I was surprised to find the town so full of tourists at this time of year but I soon learned why; two cruise ships had anchored off-shore for the day. Apparently the activity of “leaf-peeping” – traveling in search of colorful fall foliage – has been embraced by the cruise industry and Bar Harbor is one of their major ports of call.

Indeed, the fall foliage along the coast of Maine is quite showy; the broad, leafy trees overhanging the steeply inclined sidewalks of town still exhibit brilliant colors. I wandered in and out of shops, stopping here for espresso, Read the rest of this entry »

The more I travel the more I appreciate the astonishing beauty in the United States. There are so many things I love: lighthouses, waterfalls, beaches, wildflowers, mountain trails, the list could go on forever. I find that most trips take on some sort of theme and this one is no different, as today I visited my third gorge in as many days. This one was The Flume in Franconia Notch State Park in north central New Hampshire.

The Flume at Franconia Notch State Park New Hampshire

Even though the fall foliage here is “past peak,” inside the protected gorge there were enough leaves remaining on the trees to add some color to the trails. The Flume is a natural 800-foot long gorge with perpendicular walls that rise to a height of 90 feet. It was formed nearly 200 million years ago when the underlying granite fractured vertically, leaving wide gaps. Later, the molten lava that was forced up through these cracks cooled to form basalt rock. As erosion lowered the earth’s surface, the dikes were exposed. The softer basalt eroded faster than the surrounding granite, creating the deep valley that is today the gorge. After the Ice Age, Flume Brook began to flow through the valley, and the swiftly moving water further eroded the gorge and became a series of spectacular waterfalls: Read the rest of this entry »

Last night, the only thing I wanted to do was get in the car and drive back home to Florida. This happens to me occasionally when I travel long term. It may have been a touch of homesickness; more likely I just needed a rest, since I’ve been hitting the road pretty hard and staying up late to sort out photos and blog. So, I recognized my mood for what it was and slept on it.

Quechee Gorge Pond Vermont

Quechee Gorge Dam

This morning, following a good night’s sleep, I decided to hike to the bottom of the Quechee Gorge (Kwee-chee), billed as Vermont’s “Little Grand Canyon.” Read the rest of this entry »

It is rare that I cannot finds words to describe my travels, but my wanderings through Vermont today left me speechless. Each time I discovered a scene of spectacular beauty I believed nothing could top it; yet the landscape continued to offer up the most astonishing views throughout the day. I think it best to just show my photos from today, since no words can possibly do justice to Vermont in the fall:

Vermont Fall Foliage

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Despite patchy fog and spitting rain this morning, the views from the Interstates of eastern New York were spectacular. From the Hudson Valley, past the Catskills, and up to Albany, the fall foliage was at its peak. North of Albany, many of the trees had already been stripped of their leaves, and I began to worry that the fall colors at my intended destination for the evening – Lake George in the Adirondack Mountains – would be past their peak. I will simply say – not so! I think the following photos speak for themselves:

Lake George Adirondacks New York fall foliage

Lake George Adirondacks New York fall foliage

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Yesterday I was 1 for 2. Originally I had planned to return to I-95 North and and take the I-495 loop around Washington, D.C., but my friends in Fredericksburg, who travel this route every day, told me that traffic begins backing up 30 miles outside of D.C., which is only 50 miles away. Since my ultimate goal was to head north into Pennsylvania and New York, I instead chose to travel the smaller westbound country roads that would take me to I-81. I left at 6:15 a.m. in the pre-dawn darkness. By the time the sun came up I was passing through rolling Virginia farm country with well-kept barns and immense green pastures shimmering with dewdrops. I crossed over the Shenandoah Mountains, enjoying the occasional brilliant red or pumpkin orange tree that popped out at me as I rounded the curves in the road through the National Forest.

Adorable little town of Luray, Virginia

On the downhill side, signs began to appear for Luray Caverns. Having been a rock hound all my life, I have long been fascinated with caves. Some years ago I camped in Shenandoah National Park and drove a portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway. I had spotted Luray caverns during that trip but was unable to visit due to time constraints. Thankfully, I have no time constraints on this trip. As it was too early for the caves to be open, I diverted into Luray Village in search of a wake-up cup of coffee. Not only was this an adorable little mountain town, I also discovered a gem of a bakery where I stuffed my face with fresh-baked raisin scones and the most delicious Read the rest of this entry »

For the last two days I’ve been in Richmond, Virginia, attending the James River Writers Conference. Since this is the first writers conference I have ever attended, I really did not know what to expect, but the event exceeded my every expectation. Not only were the various plenary and breakout sessions incredibly informative, but without exception, everyone associated with JRW bent over backward to offer assistance. One of the keynote speakers, author Adriana Trigiani, even went so far as to encourage us to send her our manuscripts, promising that she would force her agent to read them.

Prior to attending JRW, I was somewhat discouraged. I was beginning to think that writing a book and getting it published was a pipe dream. When I first started to pursue a career in writing I quickly discovered that I needed to be able to show potential publishers clippings of my articles that have appeared in print. Since I had not previously been published, I spent the last ten months begging local magazine editors to publish my writing for little or no pay in order to develop a portfolio of by-lined articles. My efforts resulted in three published magazine pieces and two online articles, with two more scheduled to appear in the next couple of months. My progress seemed agonizingly Read the rest of this entry »